Automatic ribbon-reverse for type-writers.



D. D. PHALEN.

AUTOMATIC RIBBON REVERSE FOR TYPE WRITERS.

' APPLICATION FILED MAR.13..1'915.

1 177,442; Patented Mar. 28, 1916.

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If. ll H A y BY A'lwmmzy n. D. PHALEN. AUTOMATIC RIBBON-REVERSE FOR TYPE WRITERS.

A APPLICATION FILED MAR. l3. l9l5..

Patentd- Mar. 28,1916

2 SHEETS-SHEEI 2.

. WITNES SES UNITED STATES PATENT oFFIoE.

DUANE n. PRALEN, onsnirrnanorsoo, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOB. or onn mmr to I momronn n. REVALK, or SAN rnancrsco, CALIFORNIA.

Application iiled March 13,

To all whom it may concern: i V n Be it known that I, DUANE D. PHALEN, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city and county of San Francisco and State of California, haveinvented new and useful Improvements in Automatic Ribbonerative by the ribbon.

- latch. Fig- 6 "shows a modification of the Reverse-for Type-Writers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates. to ribbon mechanism for typewriting machines and particularly to an automatic reverse mechanism op- It is an object of my invention to provide in a typewriting machine a simple, light practicable and reliable automatically reversing mechanism operable by the writing ribbon throughthe instrumentality of the installed and omitting," one of the ribbon.

spools. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the mechanism with the space bar displaced forwardly for illustration. Fig- 3 is aside elevation of the machine, partly-1n section, omitting the carriage, and showing the reversing device in section and detail. Fig. at is a perspectiveof the separated lever and slide. Fig. 5 is a detail section of the lever eye-prong.

A indicates, generally, a standard, well I known make of typewriter having a lower main frame 2 to which is pivoted at 3, a pair of'arm's 4' forming a part of a foldable carriage frame 5; Secured to this is a type bar guide 6 in front of a carriage 7 movable along the carria-ge frame.

Suitably mounted on the main frame 2 for oscillation just below the carriage is a transverse spacer bar 9 which is actuated by the keys to the machine to operate the carriage escapement mechamsm (not shown) Mounted perpendicularly-in the arms 4 Specification of Letters Patent.

AUTOMATIC RIBBON-REVERSE FOE TYPE-WRITERS.

1915. Serial No. 14,103.

are fixed .arbors 10 upon which are loosely Patented Mar. 28, 1916.

mounted spur gears 11 with elongated hubs 12 threaded at 13 to receive knurled nuts 14. These nuts a're adapted to bind removable ribbon spools 15 firmly to the gear hubs so that the spools will be turned by and with the respective gears.

My invention pertains to means for actuating the ribbon spool gears 11 and particularly to means for automatically reversing the direction of rotation of the gears so that the ribbon 16 connected to the spools will be wound alternately upon the spools. I

utilize a ribbon having or formed with a shoulder, lug or abutment device 17 near each of its ends. The rlbbon spools are both locked on the gear hubs by the nuts ll and the ribbon rove through guides 18 of ribbon cups 19 secured on the arms 4 and through a vibrator 20 adjacent the guide 6.

The invention comprehends means'for alternately positively actuating first one and then the other gear 11 and is shown as comprising in one embodiment, a pair of worms or screws 21 for respective gears 11. The worms 21 are mounted upon the ends of an oscillating lever 22, Fig. .4, which is centrally pivoted at 23 to a convenient part of or on the carriage frame 5. The ends of 'lever 22 are slotted at 24 to receivescrews 25 fast in the arms 4 upon which the lever ends rest andslide as it oscillates about its pivot 23. The function of the lever 22 is to carry the worms 21 alternately into and from mesh with its respective gear 11, so that'first one is driven to wind off the ribbon from the opposite reel and is then u'nmeshed and the other worm thrown into mesh and the ribbon travel reversed. The

'worms 21 are rotated by means of little ratchet wheels 21 secured thereto and which are actuated by pawls 26 carried by the oscillating' spacer bar 9.

While the worms and their gears may be meshed and unmeshed by any suitable means, I accomplish it by oscillating the carrier or lever 22 which is controlled and operated by the following means: On the lever 22 is slidably mounted a shifting coupler '27 with upwardly projecting spaced prongs 28 having-eyes 29 through which the ribbon 16 is rove; The coupler also has deending tongues or lugs 30 on opposlte sides of the lever pivot 23 projecting in the path of operation of the spacer bar 9.

operhtion,='whenthe spacer bar is actmited or forcedrearwardly by the operation of ai ch'eracten' or spacekey, the bar 9 will strike.'eitheI1-l' o f; thetongnes .30 within its path-of action and so swing thelever 22 aboutjits-..pivot 23 s1'1iiioiently. to carry one \YOIIII'JiIl mesh and the ,jother out of mesh. As the barifolfces one tongue rear'werdly the opposite-tongne vvill swing forward and to permit this the bar is J'notched at 31- 31 these notches being spaced .a distance less then the-pitizhbfthe-tongues. 30. When a ribbon. shoulder-.17 draws toward and engagesthe adjacent eye prongQS o-ffthe slid ing omiple'r .tlii's'fwill be shifted by the rib.- bon '16- tocerry one tongue 30jinto the plane of one [notch-'81, whilethe other. tongue moves oven clear; of its coordinate .,no toh 31 of "the-bar and thus stends'in' the path of the bar 10,1..1Fig-(2 shows theklineql relations of 'thefl'to-ngnes' 30' t0 the notches 31 in the. bar, has forced-the. left hend end, of. lever-122 rearward. Asf the" ribbon-l6. 'inoves" "to-the righti'its shoulder 17 will engage the,

left-hand; upright-prongs 2'8 and shift the islidz ble *eouplerthat the ,right-hand 'ton'g1ie. 30 will shifti'beyond the -l inef-of the slot and, it will be pressed back by the next rearward sction of the half? Thuszthe lever 22 forms at once a bearing. end a shifter for the Worms '21; the slidin member 27 form-- ing a momentary -:coup1m device 5 between the lever and thetypewriter speceriban the coupler: being controlled .and' actuated di' rectly by the ribbon 16. As shown, as the ribbon shifts, the-eonpler and this is Streak 1551 the-- spacer the-shiftenlever unmeshes the cphcting wor'm' and gear of the Winding-spool and ineshe's upv the Worm and gear. of the opposite spool which is then driven at each blow. of the respective ratchet pawl on the her. The coupler is alternately shifted by the shouh ders on the ribbon. ends 'with the sequence that the bar Strikes one of its tongues 30-30,

. and-therefore, the lever is rookedito shift the worms.

' Any simple foi'ni of-detent latohmsy be employed'to "temporarily retain the shift lever i i-one or the other of its several positions end such, device here-consists of a yieldably supported ball 33 (Fig. 5) mom of mean-n54, Whichengages spaced indents '34 in the'bottomof the superposed end of the lever 221-.

' "In Fig.6 a hook-shaped eye 29 in sprong 28. of' the coupler 27, is shown.

Havingthns described my invention,

what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is- 1. In'e typewriting machine, the combitro1ling thefo'seillation thereof for sim1ll-' nation of rotative carriers, ribbon spools se: curedon said earners, a driver for each smool car'rien'means operative by-the keys of the ma chine for simultaneously disengag-' carrier and' engaging the'".other driver with" its carrier, .mean's beingcontrolled by the ribbon andinelnding-n shifting member car--- rylng said.- 'drivers, and a sliding couplerxnounte'd Upon said member and jactua'ted-iby 701' z neously disengag'ingj one of the drivers from its resnectii-e carrier and engaging the other driver w th its carr er, means being controlled by the ribbon and including [a and a'; .couplermounted upon said :member actuated. by the ribbon, and'engagezible' by 21 key operated part whereby. the shifter :is" actuated 3;. In a- .riob-onureversing .inechanisni, in.

Combination, spools for the ribbon, driving means foi' es'ohof said spools, a lever Carry ngfsa d driving means, end ribbon engng' ingdevices carried i' by said lever and icontaneonsly moving saiddrivin'g means into" 'coactlve relat on with one of said spools and out 'of.'coaetiverelation with the otheno-f said spools.

- 41A ribbon reversing" mechanism comprising spools for the ribbon, driving means for sei'dspools, al ever connected. with said,

driving means, a coupler mov'ably mounted on said lever, a key operated part,- nnd means 'controll'edby the ribbon for moving, said .oonpler into engagement with said key op-- emted part.

5. A ribbon. reversing 'meehanism com- ;orislng spools for the r bbon, driv ng meansforssid spools a pivoted lever carrying said driving means, a. conplen-slidhbly 1nounted on said lever, ribbon guidingdevices-carried said coupler a ikeyoperatedpar't,

and means on the-ribbon engaging with said guiding devices for sliding the coupler into cooperati ie relation with said hey operated part. l

in. testimony whereof I have hereunto. set

my hand in the presenoe of two subscribing I15.

witnesses DUANE D. PHALEK;

Witnesses: I

FAY DAVIDSON, S. PETERSEN.

- ing one of the drivers from its respective .65

.80 shifting member connected to-said drivers, 

